CBA joins global banks in project to explore bitcoin model | afr.com

The Commonwealth Bank of Australia will work with some of the world’s biggest banks to turn the technology behind digital currencies often used by criminals and computer hackers into a safe way to transfer money around the world and potentially replace the cumbersome international money transfer system.The banks plan to design “distributed ledger” technology based on the “blockchain” that facilitates bitcoin transactions. The blockchain is a decentralised database of every bitcoin transaction and involves a global network of connected computers verifying transactions, bypassing traditional banks or clearing houses, relying rather on a “decentralised verification” system to release the funds.